SpongeBob SquarePants (series)
SpongeBob SquarePants (often referred to simply as SpongeBob) is an Emmy-nominated American animated television comedy series, created by marine biologist and animator Stephen Hillenburg. Much of the series centers on the exploits and adventures of the title character and his various friends in the underwater city of Bikini Bottom. The series' popularity has prompted the release of a media franchise, contributing to its position as Nickelodeon's highest rated show, the most distributed property of MTV Networks, and among Nicktoons most watched shows. In 2007, it was named by TIME magazine as one of the greatest television shows of all time. As of 2011, SpongeBob SquarePants is the only Nicktoon from the 1990s that has not ended yet. The show is listed 15th in IGN's top 100 animated series list. The pilot episode of SpongeBob SquarePants first aired episodes in the United States on Nickelodeon on May 1, 1999, following the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards. The first episodes were called "Help Wanted", "Reef Blower", and "Tea at the Treedome". The "official" series premiere followed on July 17, 1999, with the second episode, "Bubblestand/Ripped Pants." The show reached enormous popularity by 2000 during the second season, and has remained popular since. A feature film of the series was released in theaters on November 19, 2004. The series celebrated its tenth anniversary on July 17, 2009. SpongeBob was renewed for a ninth season on January 3, 2011. So far the series has aired 306 individual episodes. Characters SpongeBob SquarePants is an energetic and optimistic sea sponge (although his appearance more closely resembles a kitchen sponge) who lives in a pineapple under the sea with his pet snail, Gary, who meows like a cat. Although Gary only actually speaks in a few episodes, (mainly in "Sleepy Time" in SpongeBob's dream world, where Gary is portrayed as a librarian with an English accent) the characters have shown an ability to understand him. Living two houses down from SpongeBob is his best friend, Patrick Star, a dim-witted yet friendly pink seastar who lives under a rock. Even despite his "Mental Setbacks", Patrick still sees himself as intelligent. SpongeBob's next-door neighbor and co-worker is Squidward Tentacles, an arrogant and ill-tempered squid who lives in an Easter Island moai and dislikes his neighbors (especially SpongeBob) for their child-like behavior. He enjoys playing the clarinet and painting self-portraits, but hates his job working at the Krusty Krab. Another close friend of SpongeBob's is Sandy Cheeks, a squirrel from Texas. Sandy is an expert at karate and lives in an underwater tree dome. When not inside her tree dome, she wears an astronaut-like suit because she cannot breathe in water. SpongeBob and Squidward's employer is former officer cadet for the Bikini Bottom Navy force and war veteran Eugene Krabs, a miserly crab obsessed with money, who is the owner of the Krusty Krab restaurant. Mr. Krabs has a whale daughter, Pearl, who is a teenage cheerleader. The reason why Mr. Krabs' daughter is a whale is unknown. Mr. Krabs’ archenemy is Sheldon Plankton, a small green copepod who owns a low-rank fast-food restaurant called the Chum Bucket across the street from the Krusty Krab. Plankton spends most of his time planning to steal the recipe for Mr. Krabs's popular Krabby Patty burgers to obtain success (occasionally with the assistance of his computer wife, Karen), though his schemes always end in failure.